Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood sets constitution showdown

The Muslim Brotherhood announced that the country's constituent assembly will hold an up or down vote then on a new draft constitution that has roiled Egyptian politics for months. If it passes a body that appears packed with Islamist politicians, most of those from the Brotherhood, the constitution will then be put to a national referendum. One caveat is that, in the coinage of political scientist Marc Lynch, Egyptian politics since Mubarak have resembled Calvinball, with rules and deadlines and statements shifting constantly.

Nevertheless President Mohamed Morsi, the Brotherhood politician who became the country's first freely elected president last June, appears committed to his current course. He's gambling the move will defuse an increasingly tense situation on the streets of Cairo. In the past week he's boldly (or recklessly, depending on your point of view) moved to break the constitutional impasse.

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At the end of last week he issued a decree removing judicial oversight from the process, since he feared Egypt's judges would nullify the constituent assembly much as they'd nullified the election of parliament in June. That move had secular political forces warning that he was setting himself up as a dictator. The Brotherhood shot back that it was only a temporary move to ease passage of a constitution.

A sprawling constitution

But the constitution was the real issue all along. Secular Egyptians feared that Morsi and his Islamist allies were crafting a basic legal text that would move the country starkly in the direction of Islamic law, and argued that it was being drafted by a group that was far from representative of Egyptian society. From their point of view, they've been given two options: Live with Morsi holding all executive and legislative power, with broad immunity from judicial interference to boot; or, approve the constitution he favors.

Politicians on the assembly like Amr Moussa, a former foreign minister and Arab League chief who unsuccessfully ran for president, complained in recent weeks they weren't being given anywhere near sufficient time to review an ever-changing, expanding document, that at last count had over 230 articles.